Film-box for motion-picture cameras.



C. E. AKELEY. FILMVBOX ron MOTION-PICTURE CAMERAS.

APPLlCATlON FILED FEB. 6. 1M5.

Patented Nov. 9, 1915.

IIVI/E/VTOR W ATTORNEY'A WITNESSES.

C. E. AKELEY.

FILM BOX FOR MOTION PICTURE CAMERAS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. e. 1915.

1,159,732, Patented Nov. 9, 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2. 37 53 u n D n n l/VVE/VTOR 30 60m BY 1 n n u u n ma /W2 ,4 ENE) CARL E. AKELEY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

FILM-BOX FOR MOTION-PICTURE CAMERAS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 9, 1915.

Application filed February 6, 1915. Serial No. 6,467.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CARL E. AKELEY, a citizen of the United States, and residing in New York city, county and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Film-Boxes for Motion-Picture Cameras, of whichthe following is a specification.

This invention relates to a novel box which is adapted to conveniently hold a reel of film prior or subsequent to exposure and is more-particularly designed to be used in conjunction with a motion picture camera such for instance, as shown and described in a copending patent application filed by me August 3rd, 1914:, under' Serial Number 851,777.

My novel film box is so constructed that it may be readily opened and closed for inserting or removing a reel of film, that the film ingress or egress opening is automatically closed while the film box is removed from the camera, and that the film may be wound up in such a. manner thatthe difference between the rotary speeds with which the inner and outer convolutes of the film spiral are formed is reduced to a minimum. The invention further comprises other novel features of construction as more fully pointed out in the appended specification and claims.

In the accompanying drawing, Figure 1 is a face view of a film box embodying my invention; Fig. 2 atop view of Fig. 1; Fig.

' 3 a cross section through the complete box on line 3-3, Fig. 4; Fig. 4 a vertical section on line 4-14, Fig. 2; Fig. 5 a cross section on line 5-5, .Fig. 4; Fig. 6 a left hand end view of the central portion of Fig. 3, with the cover removed, and Fig. 7 a detail View of the connection between the film and the spring. 1

My improved film box A comprises essentially a circular shell 10 provided with an integral bottom 11 connected to said shell by an intermediate conical portion 12. At the opposite side, shell 10 is provided with a conical inwardly extending flange 13. Box A is adapted to be closed by a circular cover 14 having a conical rim 15 that is adapted to engage the fiange13. To the inner side of bottom 11 there is centrally secured a disk 16 provided with a stud 17 upon which is loosely mounted the hub 18 of a hollow drum or spool 19. The outer end of the latter is interiorly recessed as at 20 for the permanent reception of a disk 21 provided with a hub 22 that loosely engages stud 17. Cover 14 is provided with a central opening 23 for the accommodation of a suitably actuated driving shaft (not shown) which is furnished with a coupling member adapted to engage the slotted end portion 24 of hub 22. In order to prevent the light from entering the interior of the film box through opening 23, cover let is provided with a fixed inner ring 25 having an inwardly extending flange 26 that is adapted to engage a circular gasket 27. The latter is loosely mounted within the recessed section 20 of spool 19 and is forced against flange 26 by a spiral spring 28 interposed between said gasket and disk 21.

As is well known, a spool should be driven considerably faster at the beginning of the winding-up operation than at the end thereof for taking in the same length of film during the same time, which difference is due to the difference of diameter of the inner and outer convolutes of the film reel. In order to reduce this difference of speed as much as possible, I secure to spool 19 the inner end of a spiral spring 29 to the outer end of which is attached the inner end of the film 30, such attachment being shown to comprise a doubled up end tongue 31 of said film which is hooked into a transverse slot 32 of spiral spring 29. It will be seen that during the beginning of the windingup operation of the film, the latter will be Wound around the outer convolute of spiral spring 29, and not directly around the considerably smaller spool 19. In this way the speed of the latter for hauling in the first part of the film is considerably reduced, so that the difference between the rotary speed of the spool for winding up the beginning and that for winding up the end of the film is correspondingly reduced. After the winding-up operation has been started in the manner described, the continuous pull of the spiral spring 29 on the film will cause a gradual contraction of said spiral which voperation is rendered possible by the extremely smooth finish of the film so that the several film convolutes will easily slip by one another. This gradual contraction or winding up of spiral spring 29 will continue until the latter has been tightly drawn around spool 19, so that the desired length of film may be accommodated within box A notwithstanding the interposition of the norbeing gradually reduced in diameter as the winding-up operation of the film proceeds. The film 30 passes outwardly from box A through a substantially semi-cylindrical cap 33, shown to be provided with an end flange 34 which is secured to a curved plate 35 firmly attached to shell 10. At its. sides,

cap 33 is shown to be provided with a pair of crescent-shaped plates 36 having beads 37 that extend over said cap, while the inner edges of said plates are bent outwardly as at 38 to correspond to the inclination of cone 12 and flange 13. Cap 33 is provided with an opening 3915411611 is adapted to be closed by a curved gate 40 riveted or otherwise secured to plate 35 and made of resilient material, said gate. having the tend.- ency of engaging the inner face of cap 33 thereby closing opening 39. The free end of gate 40 is curled about a pin 41 to which is fulcrumed a link 42 that is in turn rotatably connected to an arm 43 of a tubular shaft 44. The latter is rotatably mounted within corresponding perforations of cap 33 and one of the end plates 36 and is provided with a squared section 45 adapted to be engaged by a correspondingly shaped member of the camera proper (not shown). The film 3O enters cap 33 through the opening 39 and passes over gate 40 toward a guide roller 46 rotatably mounted within said cap, whence the film passes through an opening 47 of shell 10 and plate 35 into box A. It will thus be seen that the film box is normally closed by the gate 40, clamping the film tightly between said gate and the cap, to prevent the entrance of light into said box, while upon an insertion of the box into the camera, gate 40 is turned back by a corresponding operation of shaft 44, glliereby permitting a free passage of the The cover 14 is held to box A by means of a resilient band 48 encompassing shell 10 and riveted at one end to plate 35 in proximity to cap 33. The other end of band 48 is cut out as at 49 and is curled about a pin 50. The latter passes through a corresponding aperture of a dog 51 pivoted at 1 52 to a bearing 53 mounted on plate 35, said dog being provided with a hookshaped finger piece Band 48 is provided along each of its edges with a conical. scalloped rim 55 adapted to overlap the cone 12 of bottom 11 and the conical rim 15 of cover 14. When the dog 51 occupies the position illustrated in Figs. 1, 2 and 4, the band 48 is closely drawn about shell 10 so that the conical rims 55 will tightly force the rim 15 of cover 14 against the flange 13 of shell 1O. 1f the dog 51 is swung backward through an angle of about 180, band 48 is I expanded to such an extent as to permit a withdrawal of the cover 14 for exchanging .the spool 19. After such an exchange has taken place, cover 14 is slipped with its rim 15 underneath the flange 38 of one of the end plates 36 whereupon the dog 51 is recomprising a shell, a drum rotatably mounted therein, a spiral spring secured to the drum and comprising a plurality of normally spaced convolutes, and a fihm attachable to the outermost spring-convblute and adapted to be spirally wound about said spring within the casing, thereby gradually tightening said spring-convolutes.

2. A film box of thecharacter described, comprising a shell, a drumrotatably mounted therein, a spiral spring, having a slotted outer end, means for connecting the inner end of said spring to the outer surface of the drum, and a film adapted to engage the spring-slot.

3. A film box of the character described, comprising a shell, a perforated cover adapted to engage said shell, a hollow film drum rotatably mounted within the shell, a gasket yieldingly mounted within said drum, and an annular flange extending inwardly from the cover into engagement with the gasket, said gasket and flange jointly constituting a light-tight closure for said shell.

4. A film box of the character described, comprising a cylindrical shell, a bottom having a conical outer portion connected to said shell, a conical flange extending inwardly from the shell, a cover having a conical rim adapted to engage said flange, a resilient band loosely surrounding the shell and having conical scalloped rims that are adapted to engage the conical bottom portion and the cover rim, means for tightening said band around the shell, and a film drum. rotatably mounted within the shell.

5. A film box of the. character described, comprising a cylindrical shell, a bottom hav ing a conical outer portion connected to said shell, a conical flange extending inwardly from the shell, a cover having a conical rim adapted to engage said flange, a resilient band loosely surrounding the shell and havband loosely surrounding the shell and having conical scalloped rims that are adapted to engage the conical bottom portion and rim,

means for securing one end of said band to the shell, and a dog engaging the other end of the band for either tightening or slacking said band, and a film drum rotatably mounted Within the shell.

shell, a substan- 7. A film box of the character described,

comprising an apertured tially semi-cylindrical cap secured to the shell and covering the shell-aperture, said cap being provided with an opening for the passage of a film, and a gate adapted to light-tightly close said opening.

8. A film box of the character described, comprising an apertured shell, a cap secured to the shell and coveringthe shell-aperture, said cap being provided with an opening for the passage of a-film, and a resilient gate adapted to clamp the film against the cap,

thereby providing a flight closure for the cap.

9. A film box comprising an apertured shell, a cap secured to-the shell and covering the shellaperture, said cap being provided with an opening for the passage of a film, a resilient gate adapted to close said opening, a link pivoted to said gate, pivoted to said link.

CARL E. AKELEY.

of thecharacter described,

and an oscillatable arm 

